With a devastating war still raging on, the Tigray region in northern Ethiopia has become a land of famine, massacres and brutal destruction. Its suffering has led to allegations of genocide, threats of sanctions and fears of a humanitarian catastrophe.
But some Canadian gold-mining companies see Tigray as something else: a potential bonanza. Their jostling for mineral rights has continued even as the war deepens, with the miners confident that the region holds billions of dollars in gold.
At least two Vancouver-based junior companies have been in contact with the Ethiopian government during the Tigray conflict this year, pushing to secure licences and rights for their projects in the region.
One of the companies, East Africa Metals Inc., has privately written to the government to suggest that its partners are ready to invest US$120-million in Tigray. In the same letter, the company demands improvements to the security of its tenure, so that it can fend off claims from a rival Canadian company.
The lobbying by the Canadian miners has sparked criticism from Canadian and Tigrayan activists, who are concerned that the investments could influence Ottawa’s position on the war and could encourage Ethiopia to prolong its military campaign in Tigray.
East Africa Metals has repeatedly stated, in press releases and social-media comments in recent months, that it is close to resuming operations in Tigray.
In its letter to the Ethiopian government earlier this year, obtained by The Globe and Mail, the company said it has found US$3-billion in gold in Tigray and is “prepared to initiate its exploration and construction programs.”
On its website, the company promotes Tigray as the historic home of King Solomon’s Mines – fabled for centuries for their legendary wealth. It says it has invested more than US$50-million in the region in recent years.
The second company, Parallel Mining Corp., announced on Sept. 22 that the Ethiopian Ministry of Mines had granted it an exploration licence for gold and base metals at a site in Tigray. In an earlier deal in February, the company purchased a 95-per-cent interest in two mining property licences in Tigray from the Ethiopian government, describing their gold potential as “incredible.”
Chinese mining companies are also active in Tigray, partly owing to deals with Canadian miners. East Africa Metals has sold a 70-per-cent interest in one of its Tigray projects to China-based Tibet Huayu Mining Co., and it has reached agreement to sell a 70-per-cent stake in another Tigray project to Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd.
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